


Space Ninja

by wordsaplenty



Series: The Most Brilliant Stars [3]
Category: Voltron: Legendary Defender
Genre: Blind Keith (Voltron), Gender-Neutral Pronouns for Pidge | Katie Holt
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-09-04
Updated: 2017-09-04
Packaged: 2018-12-23 15:58:33
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,072
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11993082
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/wordsaplenty/pseuds/wordsaplenty
Summary: “High fiving someone standing next to you and fighting a hoard of angry mercenaries are two completely different things and you know it.  Just, not yet Keith, give it more time,” Keith could tell Shiro was moving toward him to place his hand on his shoulder.  If he let Shiro do that he knew he would cave.  Instead Keith stepped to the side behind Lance.AKA Shiro is worried that Keith can't handle himself after losing his sight and Keith sets out to prove him wrong.





	Space Ninja

“No Keith, that’s my final answer.”

“But why?” Keith was barely able to control his voice and prevent it from turning into a yell. Yelling at Shiro would not solve his problem.

“You know why Keith,” Shiro sighed.

“No, no I really don’t understand why you think I should sit this mission out. You know I’ve been training with Lance. I’ve gotten really good Shiro.”

“It’s still too soon,” Shiro insisted.

“Shiro, I hate to do this but I agree with Keith. Dude’s become a total space ninja,” Lance said. 

Keith lifted his hand and high fived Lance’s raised hand.

“See!” Lance said, “Total space ninja!”

“High fiving someone standing next to you and fighting a hoard of angry mercenaries are two completely different things and you know it. Just, not yet Keith, give it more time,” Keith could tell Shiro was moving toward him to place his hand on his shoulder. If he let Shiro do that he knew he would cave. Instead Keith stepped to the side behind Lance.

“And how much more time do I need to give it? It’s already been months. Even with Red you only send me on milk runs or call me out when we need to form Voltron. When will you trust me to do my damn job?”

Keith could practically feel everyone in the room stiffen. They had received a distress signal from a nearby planet and the Paladins and Alteans had been discussing what to do. Shiro wanted to lead Hunk, Lance, and Pidge down on the planet while Keith was expected to lend air support from Red. Usually Keith wouldn’t pass on a chance to use Red as his eyes, but this was tenth time in two months that he had been stuck in a support role for a mission. He was getting sick of it. What was the point of training with Lance every day if Shiro wouldn’t let him back in the field?

Shiro refused to spar with Keith, at first this didn’t bother him. Shiro had been beyond supportive in the days and weeks after he had lost his sight. But as the weeks turned into months Keith realized that the support seemed to end when it came to hand to hand combat. Shiro used to be his go to sparring partner but now, Shiro seemed to avoid the training deck like the plague. Or more accurately, he seemed to avoid Keith whenever he was training. Keith honestly had no idea if Shiro had ever even stopped by to see how his training was going. If he had he would have seen that Keith could handle what seemed to be a simple rescue mission.  
Shiro still hadn’t responded to his question. Keith’s shoulders slumped and he turned to leave the room.

“Keith,” Shiro called out. Keith paused but didn’t turn back. “You’re sitting this one out.”

The other Paladins and Alteans began to protest but Keith didn’t stay long enough to hear what they had to say. A few more steps and he was in the hallway. His fist crashed into  
the wall next to the door. Harsh pants filled the air. How dare Shiro do this? It wasn’t fair.

Counting steps and turns under his breath Keith began to head for his room before thinking better of it. Turning he began to sprint to his new destination. 

***

Red had always been fast, but today she seemed to be traveling faster than the speed of light. Flashes of stars, asteroids, and planets whipped past them as they soared toward the planet that had sent the distress signal.

Red rumbled disapprovingly at Keith. “Don’t you start now,” Keith huffed. “I can do this, I’ll show Shiro that he doesn’t need to keep me on the bench any longer.”  
Keith’s comm crackled to life suddenly, “What the hell do you think you’re doing Keith? Get back here now.”

“Can’t do that Shiro, those people need someone to help them against the mercenaries and I’m gonna do just that.” Keith was about five minutes from the planet. With Red’s speed he had about a half hour head start on the rest of the paladins. He’d show Shiro what he could do.

“Keith this is reckless, even for you,” Shiro said angrily.

“I can do this Shiro.”

“Just like you could keep you and Pidge safe for ten minutes without getting captured?”

Keith stopped breathing. 

“Shit, Keith I didn’t mean…” Keith turned off his comms, he didn’t want to hear Shiro’s apologies. Shiro had no right to bring up the mission where he and Pidge were captured.  
He’d show him what he could do. He’d prove that he could take care of himself and save the people who were currently attempting to fight of mercenaries with sticks. 

***

Keith set Red down in a forest about a mile from the town that had been overrun with mercenaries. Using Red as his eyes to scout out the town Keith had seen that the townspeople were still holding some ground, but that wouldn’t last long. From what Keith had seen in Red there were about twenty mercenaries in the town. About two thirds of the town had been ransacked by them. The last third was being defended by a few able bodied villagers. Unfortunately for them they were outnumbered as well as outgunned. While the mercenaries had guns and swords the townspeople seemed to only have simple weapons, bows and arrows and axes. 

Keith may be reckless but he had a plan. He knew that he couldn’t take down all the mercenaries on his own. So he was going to just see if he could get some of their attention and lead them into the forest where he could pick them off, lessening the numbers before the other paladins arrived. Taking one last look at the terrain before him through Red’s eyes to ensure he knew which direction to go, Keith made his way out of his lion. 

***

He made it to the edge of town. Ahead of him he could hear the sounds of lasers and shouts. The air smelled of smoke, some of the houses must have caught on fire. Keith kept his body flush against the first building he got to and listened closely, trying to focus simply on the noises that were right around the corner from him. He heard three distinct voices. He listened hoping to pick out the sounds of their boots to get a better idea of how many there were but the sounds were muffled on the dirt roads that ran through the town. 

Taking a deep breath in Keith activated his bayard, closed his eyes, and stepped around the corner. He knew closing his eyes made no real difference but it just felt right. When he had begun sparing with Lance after what the Galra had done, Lance would make fun of him for closing his eyes. He couldn’t explain it but for some reason it just felt like closing his eyes helped his other senses to focus. 

Listening closely the three voices continued to chatter away as Keith got closer. He heard a sharp intake of breath to his left and struck before the mercenary to utter a word. Boots pounded the ground to his right and a voice spoke from behind. Without pausing Keith pulled his sword from the mercenary, switching to his left hand he sliced back and the one behind him. He then tucked and rolled to the right, shoving his sword up and into the stomach of the final mercenary on this street.  
Keith stood and opened his eyes, panting over the bodies at his feet. He listened to the sounds of the mercenaries ahead. He counted 30 seconds in his head, giving the other mercenaries enough time to spread the news of their attacker, before he turned and jogged back into the forest. 

Behind him at least a dozen pairs of feet pounded the ground. Keith zig zagged through the trees as quickly as he could, taking cover as soon as he found a large enough tree. Keith waited as the boots got closer. He closed his eyes, counting the pairs of boots that were running past his tree. When he got to the twelfth pair he moved out from his tree and struck out. 

One down, three down, Keith moved from one mercenary to the next striking out with deadly precision. His own armor took more hits than he would’ve liked but so far he had nothing more than a few bruises to deal with. The mercenaries on the other hand were down to their last four pairs of boots.

They boxed him in, making it impossible for him to move without being in striking distance of at least one of them. Keith took this as a moment to rest, and wait for one of the mercenaries to make the first move. 

The mercenary behind him was the first to lunge forward. Keith stepped to his right, letting him sail past him. The one to his right took this as his chance to attack. Keith blocked the first blow, pushing back, causing him to stumble away, before striking across the mercenary’s chest. Now the last three mercenaries were behind him. 

Keith made the first move this time, rushing toward the remaining three men before him. As Keith swung and blocked he couldn’t stop the smile that was itching to break out on his face. It had been too long since he had last felt adrenaline pumping through body, he was practically jittery with it. One got a lucky hit on his left arm, slicing through the black material and causing Keith to stumble back for a moment. He quickly regained his footing and went back on the attack. Soon all that could be heard in the forest was Keith’s panting.

By Keith’s earlier count there were at least 5 more mercenaries left in the town. He started to make his way back toward the town when he heard the distinct sound of the other lions breaking through the atmosphere.

***

Pidge actually found him first. They stomped toward where he was leaning against a tree, he’d know that angry stomp, with very little weight behind it, anywhere.

“Hey Pidge, glad you could make it,” Keith said, when they had paused, presumably to take in Keith’s handy work. The stomping sound returned and next Keith knew his shoulder was stinging where Pidge had punched him.

“You idiot,” Pidge shouted, before pulling him into a tight hug. Keith curled around them, wrapping his arms tightly around their shoulders. 

“What you did was stupid,” Pidge said, pulling back from Keith, “but also pretty damn cool. You’re going to have to teach me how you did all this! I am definitely going to start watching your sparring sessions because man, this is just insane.”

Keith laughed a full belly laugh in the first time in what felt like forever. He reached out and ruffled Pidge’s hair. 

“I was sent to find you and bring you back but man, everyone needs to see this,” Pidge said. They called out over the comms to the rest of the paladins, telling them to get their butts there as fast as possible.

“You trying to give Shiro a heart attack?” Keith asked with a smirk.

“No less than he deserves,” Pidge replied, leaning against the tree with Keith.

Predictably it was Shiro’s steps that Keith heard next, followed not too far behind by Hunk and Lance.

Keith could hear Shiro’s steps slow as he took in the scene in front of him. 

“Guess who I found with 12 incapacitated mercenaries?” Pidge asked. Keith could hear the smirk in their voice. 

Lance let out a low whistle, “You’ve done well my young paladin padawan.”

“Oh man Keith, dude this is awesome! And like terrifying, is anyone else terrified right now? Just me?” Hunk said.

Shiro just continued to move closer. Keith could practically feel his eyes on him as Shiro was no doubt looking him up and down to check for injuries. 

Shiro reached out to Keith and this time Keith allowed him to place his hand on his shoulder.

“Point taken. Good work Keith, I’m proud of you.” 

Keith beamed up at Shiro, until Shiro put him in a headlock. 

“And if you ever do something so reckless again you’ll be on castle cleaning duty for a month.”

**Author's Note:**

> After the angst of the last fic I kinda wanted to just do Keith kicking some ass. I'm not sure where this series is going but I can't get this blind keith au outta my head so here goes.


End file.
